


Boggey

by blog4snape



Series: Afterimages of You [3]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Community: snapedom, Crying, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Mental Breakdown, Mental Instability, Panic, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Female/Male Relationships, Platonic Relationships, Teacher-Student Relationship, Young Severus Snape
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:21:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26363341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blog4snape/pseuds/blog4snape
Summary: Hogwarts student Severus Snape (18) finds a boggart in the divination classroom one night and has a mental breakdown while the divination professor (22)  comforts him.
Relationships: Severus Snape & Reader, Severus Snape/Reader
Series: Afterimages of You [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1915798
Kudos: 53
Collections: Snape and Reader Collection





	1. Chapter 1

February 1978

“Thank you for volunteering to do this, Severus.” You grinned at your student, the two of you sitting at a table in the center of the room.

He quirked a corner of his lip and gave a quick nod.

“Normally I give these tasks to students in detention,” You sighed as you polished another shell, “But lately there just haven’t been any students misbehaving badly enough to warrant a detention, and I can’t postpone this lesson any longer.” 

He nodded silently and set down the smooth shell he was working on, grabbing a rough one from the crate. 

“I shouldn’t complain that my students haven’t been misbehaving, normally I dislike giving someone a reward for someone else’s punishment, but so be it-” You poured more polish into the cloth and continued the menial task of polishing turtle shells. _‘If only someone invented a spell to do this.’_ You thought to yourself, scoffing at your reddened fingertips. “-Oh! Sorry, I’m rambling-”

“It’s okay.” He answered quickly as he glanced with a quirk of his brow, as if he was offended you’d even apologize.

“Thank you again. You can forget about the essay due on Monday. Don’t tell anyone else.” You winked at him. “Twenty points to Slytherin.”

He raised his chin and gave you a conspiratory smirk, “Thank you, Professor.” 

You chuckled, “Not a problem, Severus.” 

The two of you working diligently through the first crate of bones and shells helped speed along the process; however, it was getting rather late, the candles surrounding you were steadily shrinking and the room was growing comfortably dim. 

“Let’s take a break.” You stood up and stretched out your back. “The second box is in that corner, could you bring it to the table? It shouldn’t be as heavy as the first. I’m going to go make some tea. Your choice today.” You spoke as you shuffled off, opposite the direction of the box.

“Green.” He announced, cracking each knuckle individually as he stood up to grab the box. 

You riffled through the cabinets and put the green tea canister on the make-shift counter. “Could you open it and see if it’s the right one, love?” You asked him. He hummed in response. You heard him shuffling through crates and boxes in the far corner. 

It happened nearly all at once. The whistle of the kettle set it off, and then soon after was the most gut-wrenching growl you could ever hear. It wasn’t the growl of an ordinary stray mutt that found itself on the grounds. Right after, you heard Severus scream bloody murder. 

You whipped your head around and saw a werewolf standing outside of the crate and Severus frozen in place. You rushed to him, bounding across the array of turtle shells and animal bones on the wooden floor. As soon as you pointed your wand to fight the werewolf, it took on an all-too-familiar form that made all of the blood in your body, just on fire a moment ago, turn cold as ice. Quickly putting two and two together you vanished the boggart, shouting _“Riddikulus!”_ at the top of your lungs. It turned into an innocent stuffed animal, before vanishing altogether.

You finally let out a breath and closed your eyes. For a moment, everything was silent. You turned around to see Severus behind you. You closed your mouth as soon as you saw the tears streaming down his face. You reached out to touch his shoulder. 

“Sev-” You started, only to be cut off by a strangled sob as he grappled onto your shawl as if his life depended on it, collapsing onto the floor in a heap of robes. You followed shortly thereafter, kneeling and holding him.

“Severus, what’s wrong?” You asked softly, as you stroked his hair. He responded only in louder sobs as the tears soaked through your robes. _‘That was the wrong approach,’_ You chided yourself in your head. You breathed in slowly and tried again, “Shhh, it’s alright. It’s gone now. You’ll never see it again.” You whispered into his hair, rubbing his back.

He was hiccuping and struggling for air, but made no move to let go and try to breathe in. You grabbed his shoulders firmly and pushed him away slightly, so you could look at him. 

“Hey, hey- look at me-” You repeated softly until he stared at you. “Thank you, lovely. Follow my breathing.” You put a hand on his chest and one between his shoulder blades, and sat up on your knees, straightening your back self-consciously. You took a long, slow breath through your nose and waited for him to do the same. You held it for a moment, before exhaling through your mouth slowly. He did the same. “Excellent job, just like that. Breath with me.” You praised him. He gave a desperate nod, and you two continued the same breathing pattern before he finally managed to calm himself down. You smiled at him and stroked his cheek briefly before pulling him into a much less desperate hug this time. 

“You’re alright, you’re alright.” You cooed into his shoulder. “You did such a great job.” You praised, rubbing his shoulder blades. 

His tears returned, but this time without the hungry gulps of air. His hair tickled your nose and he held onto you tighter. 

Focusing on his now quiet breaths, you almost forgot about the kettle until you heard it bubble and boil over. You fought your natural urge to run over and take it off of the heat, as you didn’t want to startle Severus anymore than he already had been. You figured he was more important than some boiled water, right now. His grip on you loosened and he started furiously rubbing at his red eyes with the sleeve of his robes. You gently took his hands and shook your head. You summoned a handkerchief from your robes and handed it to him. He nodded his thanks, with a loud sniffle accompanied. Smiling in response, you gave his hair a quick stroke before standing from the floor and walking over to the mess of boiling water continuing to spit out of the kettle. 

With a quick flick of your wand, it was cleared up and the green tea was in the preferred cups. Last week you had seen a teacup in Diagon Alley that made you think of Severus, and since he often joined you after classes, you figured he should have a teacup that reminds him he is always welcome. The teacup was black, with several white roses and green snakes curling around the mug like vapor curls out of the steaming drink. Every day since then, you’ve served him tea in that cup, on a matching saucer. Turning around, you saw him sitting at the table again. Handing him his cup, full of the tea he chose, he gave a little smile and he thanked you quietly. 

He was shivering, even the hot tea did not help sate it. You took off your shawl and wrapped it around his shoulders. He curled into it immediately and covered it around himself like saran wrap. The two of you sat in silence, sipping tea.

“Let’s stop for tonight.” You said, as your tea was finished. You looked at the clock. “Oh, Severus, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to keep you after curfew.” 

Severus looked at the clock, also a bit surprised. He opened his mouth to say something but then shut it again.

“Here, I’ll walk you back in case Filch finds you.” You announced, standing up and putting the porcelain cups away. 

You turned around and expected Severus to follow you, only to see that he wasn’t. He was sitting at the table, covered in your shawl, hunched over, and trembling still. He was staring at you, brows knit. You walked back to the table. “Severus? What’s the matter?”

He shook his head softly. You focused on the strands of his hair peeking out of the shawl. “I-” He started, before closing his mouth. He looked down at his lap, biting his lips, and continuing to shake his head. The strands of hair caught outside of the shawl waved around with his head. “No.” He stated, plainly.

“No… to what?” You tilted your head. 

“I can’t go to my dorm… I can’t-” He bit his lip so hard it turned white. He got smaller, his shoulders rounded and he hid in the shawl. “I don’t-” He released his lip, the white faded quickly and turned into a deep sanguine. 

You kneeled before him, and held out your hand. He tentatively released his grip on the shawl and gave you one of his hands. You took it in both of yours, rubbing his bruised and scarred knuckles with your thumbs. You sighed softly, “You don’t want to go back to your dorm?” 

He shook his head.

“Would you be against sleeping in my office?” 

He shook his head and let out a quiet ‘please.’

“Alright.” You gave a quick nod and patted his hand, releasing it. You stood up and gave him your arm to stand. He quickly took it, but let it go as soon as he found balance and stood up.

After a relatively quiet walk to your office, you opened the door to the scent of the day: pumpkin spice, cinnamon, and nutmeg. You held open the door for Snape. The candles lit up every corner and inch of the room as the both of you waltzed in and incense started to burn. The pit of pillows, blankets, and cushions to the side of your office had to be the coziest spot in the entire castle, and it’s a little embarrassing to admit how many times you collapsed on the floor there instead of making it to your actual bed in your chambers. You closed the door with a bit too much force, startling Severus and the odds and ends - not all related to divination - that decorate your shelf, as both of the aforementioned victims jumped and shook slightly. Severus whipped around to face you, with wide eyes that resembled a doe.

“Oh, sorry darling, I didn’t mean to slam the door.” You apologized, scolding yourself in your head. He released a breath and nodded in reassurance, rolling his shoulders back.

You went around the room and picked up some extra quilts that were sprawled on the butterscotch-colored desk chair and the mulberry-colored couch behind it.

He had taken off his robe and folded it in his hands, but kept your shawl on.

“Here love, you can sleep in the pit. It’s more comfortable than that old couch anyways.” You took his robes from him and placed them on a seldom-bare spot on your cluttered desk. He was still in his school uniform and shoes. 

“Do you want to get some night clothes from your dorm? I can walk with you there.” 

He shook his head.

“Alright, whatever you prefer. I just want you to feel comfortable.”

He nodded his thanks and toed off his shoes before climbing into the pit, cocooning himself in your shawl amongst all of the other quilts, covers, pillows, and soft things. 

You waved your wand and started a fire in the hearth. You left for a moment and set a cup of tea and a glass of water down near the pit. Extinguishing the other candles around the room, you kneeled next to his head, barely poking out of the many blankets, and stroked his hair for a moment. He wordlessly leaned into your touch.

“I’ll come back to wake you in the morning before breakfast. Need anything before I go?” You spoke softly. His head shot up out of the covers, pillows, and cushions falling around him as if he emerged out of a pool of water. 

“Don’t go!” He latched onto your arm with strength rivaling a serpent’s maw. 

“You don’t want to be alone tonight?” You asked. 

He shook his head, cheeks flushed red. Your cheeks matched his. He relinquished his hold. A million thoughts ran a million miles per hour through your head. You desperately wanted to say ‘no this is too inappropriate-’ but you found yourself saying the word, “okay” before your mind even registered what was happening. 

You took a blanket from the pit and a pillow that had been kicked to the side and as you went to stand up and move to the couch, Severus saw where you were headed and moved with the speed of a striking viper and grabbed your ankle as you walked away. You let out a quick shriek and lost your balance for just a moment, before looking down and seeing Severus staring up at you with those dark, frantic doe eyes again. 

“What’s the matter, lovely?” You questioned, clutching at your racing heartbeat under your chest.

He licked his lips and blinked a few times. “Please,” His voice was so quiet, you could hardly hear it over the crackling from the fire. His eyes glittered before drowning in tears. “Hold me,” The tears ran down his face and he held your ankle even tighter. “Like how you,” He sniffled, “did in the classroom.” 

You sighed. “Alright, darling.” Your brain screamed at you for being an idiot.

He finally let go of your ankle and held up the blankets for you to crawl in. You murmured a quick spell to lock the door, and then kicked off your boots and crawled into the cocoon, facing Severus. He immediately got closer and tucked his nose into your collarbone. He didn’t grab you, but he was still gripping the shawl that smelled strongly of you and wrapped around him snugly. You put an arm underneath him and pulled him closer. He sighed in relief. You stroked his cheekbone, wiping his tears with your thumb. 

After his tears stopped falling, you focused on the crackling of the fire and moved to run your fingers through his hair instead. His hair was full of knots so you resorted to just scratching his scalp lightly instead. He sighed again, pushing his face as close as possible to your neck. 

“Thank you,” He breathed lightly, smiling softly against your neck.

“Of course, darling,” You murmured, sleepily. You stared at how the orange glow of the fire formed a halo around Severus’s black hair and felt him smile and breathe out softly against your skin. “Get some rest, lovely. I’ll be right here.” Without any second thought, you pressed a soft kiss to Severus’s forehead and fell asleep to the feeling of a giggle vibrating across on your neck and the sound of the fire crackling in front of you.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A continuation of the events of last night.

Golden rays of light came in through the high oval windows and reflected upon a number of objects in your office of ends and odds. One particularly pesky pendant was illuminated with the glowing sun and shined directly into your resting eyes, waking you up with a slight groan. You blinked a bleary eye, glaring at the swirling blue eye that woke you. On the shelf next to it, smoke curled lazily from the incense burning. Looking around, there were some embers still glowing in the hearth. 

_ ‘Why did I light a fire in the hearth last night-’ _ You thought, scrubbing your face before you turned and saw your answer. You nearly freaked out to see a serene pale face framed with long black hair right next to yours, highlighted from the rising sun. You had hoped last night to be a weird fever dream. 

You checked the time, rubbing your eyes and yawning. You lightly shook Severus’s shoulder. He groaned and turned around, showing his back to you.

“Severus,” You spoke softly, your voice clouded from your recent sleep. 

He ignored you and shifted further into the pillow pit. 

“Severus.” You repeated, firmer. He ignored you still. You grabbed a stray maroon cushion and started hitting him with it. “I know you’re awake!” You accused him in a lighthearted tone. 

He started laughing, a raspy and choked sound, and held up his arms in defense.

You stopped hitting him, laughing, too. You sat up, pushing his shoulder to urge him up. “It’s nearly time for breakfast, you need to get changed and go back to your dorm-” 

He clocked you in the head with the sapphire pillow that was resting under his hip. You gaped, catching yourself with your hands on the cushions beneath you. He looked at your incredulous face, laughing.

“Oh, so that’s how you want to play?” You grinned, grabbing another pillow and bringing it above your head before slamming it down on him. He rolled out of the way just in time. You cursed underneath your breath, much to Severus’s laughter. “Get back here so I can hit you!” You called out after him. He laughed even louder, his face bright with mischief. He rolled behind you and hit you with a pillow from behind, making you fall into a lying position on the cushions. You gave a startled yelp and a disappointed groan. “That’s not fair!” You gave a playful scowl at him as he kneeled over you, grinning. 

“Life’s not fair.” He chortled with a half-hearted grin. 

“Tell me about it,” You laughed, sitting up. “Alright, enough lollygagging, we have to get you to breakfast. If anyone asks why you left my office we can say you had early detention.” You stood up, looking for your discarded boots. One was next to a jar of rose oil, and the other somehow landed on the couch. You sat on the couch and pulled them on as Severus sat next to you, his shoes already on.

“Who was that?” He asked you, his face serious.

“Who was what?” You asked, tying your shoelaces. 

“The person last night, the one that the boggart turned into.” 

You froze, your hands still holding your half-done laces. You swallowed thickly and spoke, your voice suddenly sounding hoarse, “It’s no one important.” 

“Your voice sounds like mine.” He raised an eyebrow.

You cleared your throat a few times and finished tying the loops into your boots. “It’s fine, I might need to drink some water. You  _ definitely _ need to drink some water. Do you have a headache?” You turned to him, concerned. “You must be dehydrated from yesterday.” You stated, holding a hand to his warm forehead.

“I’m fine, thank you.” He recoiled from your hand as if it burned him. 

You huffed, and summoned a glass of water and gave it to him. 

“Drink.” 

He sighed, and brought the cool water to his chapped lips, downing the whole thing in one go. You stared at the glass, refilling it with a barely-noticeable flick of your wand. He glared at you, and you nodded your head at the glass in his hand. He groaned, the raspy sound breaking in the middle. He rolled his eyes and drank more. You gave him an overly-cheery and oh-so-fake grin before patting his shoulder and standing up. You found your shawl sprawled among the soft stockpile of quilts. You wrapped it around your shoulders, adjusted your hair in a hanging mirror, and grabbed the wide-brimmed hat you placed next to Severus’s robes last night. You handed the robes to him and sat in the butterscotch upholstery at your cluttered desk. You started revising your lesson plan for the day.

“Aren’t you coming to breakfast, professor?” He queried, straightening his robes. 

You looked up from the parchment, your quill paused in air. Your nose twitched and you bit the inside of your mouth. “I’ll think about it.” You stated simply, thinking about the frightening figure from last night instead. 

He nodded, sucking his upper teeth and looking down for a moment. He met your gaze. “What about the bones? We didn’t finish them last night.” 

You suddenly remembered the animal bones and turtle shells scattered across your classroom and sighed to yourself, thinking about how you’d have to organize a whole room before your first class of the day came in. You set your quill in its inkwell and sat back in the chair. “We can postpone the lesson for tomorrow, I guess. Today will just be a review.” You thought aloud, thrumming your fingers against the scratched wood. 

“Professor,” He started. 

You hummed in response.

Severus raised a dark brow, “tomorrow is  _ Saturday. _ ” Severus put his hands in his pockets and gave you a sideways glance. 

You gazed at the calendar on the wall of weird widgets and whats-its. He was correct. Today was Friday. You rubbed a hand to your face, scowling. “Monday it is, then.” 

“If you’re not going to breakfast,” Severus deduced, “I’ll see you in class, then.”

“Yes. Make sure to drink something at breakfast-”

He rolled his eyes and walked away. Before he opened the door, he paused and turned around. “Oh, and Professor-?”

You looked up.

“Thank you again for last night.” He nearly whispered, hunching his shoulders again.

You gave him a little smile,

“Anytime, Severus.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is part of a larger series of one-shots. This is the second thing I've written for it, but it's not the beginning of the story.

**Author's Note:**

> This is a part of a larger series of one-shots called Afterimages of You. This is the first one-shot (by date) that I've written for the series, but it is by no means the *true* beginning of the story.


End file.
